My Genealogical Adventures through 400 Years of Family History

Archive for the ‘genealogy gifts’ Category

I had the idea while writing my 50 Gifts for Genealogists post of making tile coasters with old photos. I got some inspiration from this post I saw on Pinterest from Boxy Colonial, as well as several other Pinterest examples, but I also improvised.

I thought I would like to use family photos, but not of people. I ended up doing two variations of this: old New England houses that had belonged to my direct ancestors, and, at my daughter’s suggestion, the four houses that my parents owned before their present house. I also bought scrapbook paper and made some with Christmas themes, and some for year-round.

Getting the pictures

I had taken pictures of the historic houses I wanted to use. For my parents’ houses, my daughter had one picture that was suitable, and I went out while the leaves were still on the trees to photograph the three other houses, which are nearby.

So I was starting with pictures like this:

Former house on Waterman Avenue, Warwick, R.I.

I needed to do several things to make them work:

make them square (by cropping)

eliminate aspects of the picture that were not accurate for the period they owned it (in the case above, the color is wrong, and the addition to the house beyond the garage is not original)

make them more interesting with special painting effects

make them just under 4 inches in size (for this, I actually needed to take the edited pictures and move them onto a blank Word document, then resize. I printed on a normal color printer, on copier paper, from there).

I could handle the cropping and resizing, but I got my daughter to use a special app called “Waterlogue”on her iPad to make the “watercolor” effect on each picture.

So at this point I had pictures that looked like this:

The square, resized, watercolored picture of the Waterman Ave house.

For the historic houses, I wanted to get those done on my own, and I downloaded a free one week trial of AKVIS Artwork 8.1. It was fairly easy to use.

Editing one of the historic pictures using AKVIS Artwork 8.1.

The results were nice:

The watercolor version of the historic house in Sheldonville, Mass., built by my 5th great grandfather Nathan Aldrich and his father, Asa Aldrich about 200 years ago.

I also used Paint to retouch the photos, eliminating a few window air conditioners and other modern touches.

I moved the pictures into Word when I was finished editing them so that I could size them exactly, in inches. Then I printed them. I measured them against the tiles and cut them out with scissors.

Putting the tiles together

I also purchased:

scrapbook paper on sale at Michael’s which I cut to size

4 inch square ceramic tiles, color Bisque, from Lowe’s, 16 cents each

Modge Podge and some foam brushes. I got the shiny Modge Podge, but the matte might have been better

Acrylic spray for finishing

We already had glue and some quarter inch cork sheets around the house.

I covered the tiles with Modge Podge, placed the picture on top immediately – you can wiggle it at this point, but once you let go, you can’t really move it again. Then I coated the top of the picture with Modge Podge, being careful to make sure each edge was held down firmly.

Modge Podge going on one of the scrapbooking paper tiles. It dries clear.

I gradually put about 24 tiles together, and went back and recoated each one with Modge Podge three additional times. They were looking good:

My parents’ four previous houses

This is the historic house set:

Some historic houses owned by my direct ancestors

Along the way of all that Modge Podging and drying, I cut the cork for the backs, and began applying the backs just before the last coat of Modge Podge. My husband made me a wooden template to use for the size I wanted the cork to be (slightly smaller than the tile) and I cut the cork with a knife.

Cutting the cork backing.

I glued the cork on the back of each tile. I just used Tacky Glue along the edge of the tile back, and on some of the raised areas; it worked fine.

Gluing the cork on the back of each tile.

The Christmas tiles

The last step was to spray an acrylic finish on the tiles (the smell was really annoying!). Although that dried quickly, I plan to leave them out for a week or so before packing them up for gifts.

The finished tiles after the acrylic spray.

In closing

I think the tiles made with scrapbooking paper are cute, but I think I would only be interested in doing these in the future with my own artwork or photos – that’s the fun and unique part. I was surprised to see that the Modge Podge didn’t damage the print at all on my copied photos. It worked fine.

I made 25 tiles, and it took about a half day to take and manipulate the photos, and most of a day to make the tiles. I think I could do this faster next time.

The post you are reading is located at: http://onerhodeislandfamily.com/2014/11/30/a-quick-gift-for-mom-and-dad/

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Choosing a gift for a genealogist can be puzzling. Loved ones and, especially, relatives want to be supportive but don’t know how. To those who search for that perfect idea, maybe one below will be right for your favorite genealogist. Also, see if there are additional ideas in the comments.

Computers and electronics

1. The newest thing I’ve seen this year looks intriguing, but I’ve never tried it and I’m having trouble even finding a vendor (this one is from Canada). ZCAN+ looks like a mouse, but it’s a scanner! Thanks to Thomas McEntee of Hack Genealogy for that tip. He knows about all the cool stuff.

Nope, it’s not a mouse. It’s a scanner.

2. For the experienced genealogist, I like the Evidentia 2 software for analyzing sources and evidence along the lines of the genealogical proof standard. As a gift, you would want to buy it on CD.

5. I still like EyeFi Mobi for auto-download of pictures from your camera onto your computer.

6.Wacom Sketchpad helps you write, draw and edit photos on your computer. Ever try to edit photos or mark up screenshots for a presentation with a mouse? Then you know why this is great. Thanks to Jenny Lanctot of Are My Roots Showing? for the suggestion.

10. Midge Frazel of Granite in My Blood suggests: “Give the gift of power! Buy a small easily packed “lipstick” style charger” for your cell phone (another sample here). On the higher end (more for the serious traveler) I love my Mophie. Midge also suggests that a tiny portable stand (cute colors!) for a phone or tablet might make a good stocking stuffer.

11. Amazon gift cards are useful for letting the genealogist pick out their own book or tech gadget. This suggestion came from blogger Barbara Poole of Life from the Roots.

12. If your genealogist will be meeting others at conferences, libraries and town halls, makingbusiness cards is a fun idea. My new favorite is Moo cards.

13. A good, simple camerais getting cheaper and cheaper – this Canon looks like a good buy. Don’t forget to get a memory card to go with it. Cheaper than photocopies!

Office items

14. 97.8% of genealogists love office supplies. OK I made that up. But this little book of sticky Redi-Tag Divider notes was love at first sight.

Redi-Tag Divider Notes would be handy when working in books or notebooks.

16. Barbara Poole of Life from the Roots sent along an idea about custom notepads made with your genealogist’s name and a cute quip (“On the trail of the ancestors of …” or something). I’m sure many vendors offer custom pads online, or try a local store.

17. If your genealogist is surrounded by books, there are some bookendswith index tabs that won’t get lost when the shelves fill up. Actually, the Container Store has three styles I love: Index bookends, Tower bookends with a little storage cubby, and Mod bookends.

Bookends from the Container Store

18. I like magazine files, also from the Container Store. But I’m still convinced some charming ones could be handmade – some people cut and cover cereal boxes.

23. If you have deep pockets, and you want to give your favorite genealogist the absolute perfect out of print book about the exact family or location (“for the entire United States, Canada, England, Ireland, Scotland, and more”) they’re researching, there’s actually a way to do that! Buy the NEHGS Classic Reprints Catalog for $12.95. It comes with a credit for $12.95 towards the purchase of a custom reprinted book from the 12,000 mentioned in the catalog. You could consider a gift certificate to go with it (it would probably be another $30 – $50 or more to get the book) and your genealogist would be all set to choose and order the perfect reprint. But even a thrifty genealogist could use this book to locate pre-1923 volumes that are available online.

This is typical of the books ordered through the NEHGS reprint program.

24. The idea of heritage cookbooks was sent to me by Wendy Grant Walter. She recently purchased Great German Recipesand said: “in it are many dishes that I remember having as a kid that I assume my mom learned from her 1st generation German mom.” At that same link many other cultures are covered, too.

32. For those new to DNA testing, and looking for an easy way to try it out, I could recommend an Ancestry DNA test kit. Your genealogist will use the kit to submit a sample (in fact, it will be important to the genealogist to choose WHO will be sampled) which will be analyzed, and the results, available online, will show links to other individuals, and with any luck, those individuals will be showing an accurate tree online.

33. A better choice for the same money, for a genealogist who is more experienced, is the Family TreeDNA Family Findertest kit. Family Tree DNA has a more robust promise to maintain your access to your information, and it gives enough information to more accurately allow you to estimate, if the right people are tested, the common source of your matches.

DIY

34. This year, hubs made me a cork bulletin board for the genealogy room.

Bulletin board made for me. I’m thinking about putting a family tree printout on here.

36. A family calendar is popular with Heather Wilkinson Rojo’s family. She says: “A gift my husband does every year is a family calendar using Power Point. We give it out at our family Christmas party, and everyone looks forward to it every year. Around Thanksgiving I solicit photos from my family along themes (vacations, or school photos, or sports images) and I also steal photos from everyone’s Facebook accounts. We arrange the photos for the large calendar pages (above the chart of the months and days) and we also put tiny photos in for everyone’s birthdays and anniversaries. You can find an old blog post for this here“ on Heather’s blog Nutfield Genealogy. Thanks, Heather! I would never have considered PowerPoint for easily formatting the pictures. Great idea!

38.Heritage jewelry from this Etsy shop by Danette Taylor. I am fascinated by these custom pieces – not sure if I’m more intrigued by the decoupage bangles, the collage brooches, the decorative recipe plates, or the portrait pendants.

An old fashioned pin made with your old photo by Danette Taylor. Picture used with permission.

39. i (chart) you makes beautiful custom ancestor charts; you send the data and they send you the file electronically, ready for you to have printed in the size you prefer. This would have to be ordered by the genealogist, but a gift certificate (see the last few boxes on the main page) might be nice. Thanks to Wendy Grant Walter for this idea.

40. Barb’s Branches has some attractive tree jewelry in an Etsy shop. Among her interesting handmade “tree” pieces, she has the inspired idea of making jewelry from old silver spoons. Amazing! Barb is offering my readers a break – for 15% off, use coupon code: RIFAMILY2014 at checkout. The coupon/discount will be good through Dec 31, 2014.

A pendant made from an antique silver spoon, by Barb’s Branches. Picture used with permission.

44. I need to look for my ancestors in the two volumes of Runaways, Deserters, and Notorious Villains from Rhode Island Newspapers by Maureen Alice Taylor. And there are other interesting Rhode Island Books at Picton Press.

As the holiday season approaches, it’s a good time for genealogists to let loved ones know about the fabulous gift possibilities that are out there. Here are my top 50 choices, but check out the comments, too, where I’m sure others will leave good ideas. Here we go!

On the road

1. Some sort of rolling briefcase, for conferences or town hall visits. Not too crazy big, in case it needs to fit into a locker.

2. A canvas or quilted bag, with zipper and inside pockets, for carrying notebooks, camera and supplies.

3. Cocoon Grid-It keeps small electronics together when traveling (also available on Amazon)

4.TableTote – a portable laptop stand for use at microfilm machines, or anywhere a temporary workspace is needed. It folds completely.

5. No genealogy trip is complete without cute business cards to exchange with the other researchers. Print the last names of the family lines being researched on the back.

Office items

6. Clip board. I use a green print one from Staples the most because it is incredibly light weight. A clipboard, a pad, and a pencil can be brought into most archives, even if nothing else can, and a clipboard serves as a writing surface when at a microfilm machine or library.

7. If you want to get all You’ve-Got-Mail, a bouquet of newly sharpened Mirado Black Warrior pencils and a pencil sharpener would be nice. Also a wooden ruler, desk scissors, highlighters, and White Pearl erasers.

8. Genealogists spend a lot of time at their desks. How about a comfortable desk chair?

16. Try finding a history book, or even a movie, about something the genealogist is researching now. Did he or she just find a Civil War soldier? A California gold miner? A Mayflower ancestor? Even better, read and discuss it together.

17. Genealogists enjoy reading Family Tree Magazine. This is an especially good choice for beginners, and another recommendation for beginners would be the book “Family Tree Problem Solver” by Marcia Hoffmann Rising, available here.

22. Paid subscriptions to online genealogy sites like GenealogyBank.com, Fold3.com, and Ancestry.com probably need to be selected by the genealogist, but a homemade gift card offering to cover one would be good.

23. USB flash drives. 8gb or 16gb should be fine. Try finding ones where the cover is not a separate piece.

24. Eye-Fi camera memory card to auto-upload from camera to computer (try Amazon.com for a full variety).

25. Camera digital memory cards.

26. A Canon CanoScan 9000F flatbed scanner is very useful for genealogists that are trying to digitize records and photos at home.

34. Try your local historical society. Perhaps they have a membership, event or materials that might be helpful to a genealogist.

Homemade gifts

35. A box of family letters, scrapbooks, pictures, or mementosthat the genealogist hasn’t managed to get hold of yet.

36. Research an ancestor or story the genealogist is not working on, and surprise them with a little report. They will love it!

37. Paint the inside of old mason jars, insert a paper or plastic cup as a liner, for use as desk accessories.

38. Offer to explore cemeteries together, of the genealogist’s choosing. Pack a sandwich and a camera!

39. Most genealogists have subscriptions, and would like magazine holders. The pink print ones are from the Vera Bradley Outlet; the black ones are from Staples. It would be possible for a creative person to make some cute ones; there are plenty of instructions online.

For those with Rhode Island ancestors

40. The Rhode Island Historical Society has a bookstore at the John Brown House, and online, offering my favorite print of Providence ever, President Street by Joseph Partridge, 1822. Only $15.

42.Genealogical Dictionary of Rhode Island, by John Osborne Austin (with additions and corrections by G. Andrews Moriarty). Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Company, 1969. This can be purchased new for $65 or perhaps purchased used for less. It maps the first three generations of many early Rhode Island families.

43. Heads of Families at the First Census of the United States Taken in the Year 1790: Rhode Island. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co, 1990. $20.50. Lists heads of families in Rhode island, 1790, with brief data.

44. Look over the New England Historic Genealogical Society’s Book & Gift Catalog. I am very excited about Elements of Genealogical Analysis by Robert Charles Anderson (coming in January 2014). (hopefully my family has read down this far).

46. New Englanders in the 1600’s, Expanded Edition by Martin E. Hollick, 2012, published by the New England Historic Genealogical Publishing Company. This book offers a bibliographic summary of genealogical work published 1980-2010 on certain early New England settlers.

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